Welcome to Walnetto Farm in the most southern tip of the Cascade Mountain range. Just a stone's toss from Mt. Lassen Volcanic National Park and all the treasures these mountains hold. We raise LaMancha dairy goats,laying hens and garden. A homestead realized on "42 Acres of Paradise" off the grid.

Monday, April 24, 2017

Farming/Homesteading Ain't For Sissy's

We have had some nice sunny, warm weather this past week. Now we are back to showers, rain and potential low snow (not here though) until Thursday. Then it promises to be dry and sunny plus warmer again. The lovely yellow rose is blooming as is just about everything else around here. I have six rose bushes and they are all in various stages of bloom. In fact I have already had to dead head three of them.

With the warmer dry weather comes the spring cleaning barn style. I got the hay barn cleaned and organized yesterday and also began to move thing into the new greenhouse. The photo here is before cleaning. Of course I didn't get an after because when I get focused just about everything else goes out of my brain. You have to trust me it is a clean hay barn now.

Here I will share a photo of what I took out of it and is now in the new and improved compost pile.

I then washed out some pans and bucket that were really needing it. I also cleaned a few crates and got that organized as well. Note Libby my lovely assistant director of quality control.

Sherman in the foreground and Yarrow behind him. Good grief they were up all night keeping the bad guys on their toes. And it was a warm, lazy afternoon for some of us!

The blueberries promise a bumper crop this year provided the birds keep their beaks off them. That is one reason they reside in pots on the deck. This is the "cat deck" so it provides natural bird control.

I managed to get in a quick visit last week also to the Armstrong across the road . Janet introduced me to the latest "house calf" and of course I got to see LD (Lonesome Dove) the rejected wool/hair cross ram lamb. In fact I had come to take his manhood away but he was hanging on to them and that would have to wait for another day.

I managed to go to free sew morning at the Blue Iris again. Got the binding on the quilt waiting on top of the sewing machine to load up done. Now just to take the time today to hand stitch the binding on the backside and then it will hit the couch. Promise photo when I get that far.

Don't you just love the fun tote that Janet gifted me with ?

One of the neighbors on the east side of the driveway was watching my progress to the gate. I lovvvve my neighbors!!

Monkee was not a happy camper last week. Had some ear issues that earned him a cone of shame for a few days. April was not kind to us cat wise. First was sweet Helen who may be have beginnings of liver failure. She is twelve and a sweet girl . Chloe who had a dental issue and lastly Ari the English Setter had to break the cat streak with a bilateral puncture wound between the second and third digits. So a multiple $$$$ later and I am hoping we are done for awhile. Critter issues do seem to come in groups.

The temp is dropping and I need to get on with the quilt binding day. I will be back when life allows and hopeful to have some more wild flower photos for you all before they take their leave for another year.

I got my blue berries in varieties that are zone specific and also bloom early bloom later . So the first should be ripe in May and the urges in late June or early July. I didn't trim the branches this year just to see what happens. So far largest crop since I got them four years back.

I love feed bag totes. Janet finds them on Zulily. But your handy with a sewing machine just call all your friends with various stock and snag the bags.

As I said to Rain things good and not so seem to come in three for certain. I hope we are done for now.

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About Me

I am a native Californian old enough to remember when the Golden State lived up to her name. I live on 42 acres off the grid with one husband, a Border Collie/ Aussie cross Cali, an English Setter Ari, two Great Pyrenees Sherman and Yarrow who live with our LaMancha dairy goats and keep them from harms way. Toss in a few chickens, a yearly garden well you get the picture. Also have two adult children and 4 incredible grand girls. I am also a spinner, weaver, knitter and occasional quilter.